The freelance blues can get to even the toughest of freelancers. The thoughts of "What in the world am I going to do?" or "Why aren't I getting any new projects?" can be highly burdensome, especially during these times. Downtimes often lead to depression, especially if the downtime drags on for days or even weeks.
Freelance Writing is a Service Industry
The holidays are usually the worst time of year for anyone in service industries because almost everyone is out buying gifts. Some creative freelancers are able to go out and create products to sell at flea markets and events but for the most part, every freelance writer suffers during the holidays.
Ways to cope with the holiday slow down:
- Save money those available nine months of the year that aren't holidays. Then when the holidays hit, it won't be so brutal.
- Buy Christmas gifts on Black Friday (the Friday after Thanksgiving) or the day after Christmas.
- If there isn't a steady gig going on right now, find one. Start searching as early as July. These days it can take six months or more to land a decent steady gig.
Down Times in General
Down times happen to each freelancer at different times but there are always some universal down times that make everyone squeeze their wallet.
- Mid-November through mid-January – These months can be devastating because of Thanksgiving, Christmas, and New Years.
- August – The month of August is the biggest vacation month of the year. Freelancers can expect the entire month to be incredibly slow as vacationing clients equal no clients during this time.
Coping With Downtime Depression
Whether bids have not been accepted, there's a lack of projects popping up, or clients aren't regularly calling in, down times can still be rather depressing. Its easy to shake off that rejected bid or ignore the lack of updates on those RSS feeds when there's a steady gig going on or when it doesn't last so long. When it drags on for days and days, however, it can be very difficult to cope with.
Ways to cope:
- When the internet doesn't seem to be cutting it fast enough, pound the pavement. Search locally and post business ads wherever possible.
- Take a soothing bath or meditate. Sometimes mental blockage can cause people to miss things that they may have been able to do to help the situation.
- Brain storm ways to get new clients.
- Chat it up while doing those daily errands. Complement the bank teller, waitress, or whoever you may see. Don't be shy. The closed mouth is never fed.
Downtime depression is almost always temporary and is always related to the situation. If there is no change in mood despite circumstances changing, try speaking with a physician as this may be a serious problem.
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